NY State Senate Bill 2023-S4798

Senate Bill S4798

2023-2024 Legislative Session

Amends the New York state college choice tuition savings program to have the program also apply to elementary and secondary schools

download bill text pdf

Current Bill Status - In Senate Committee Higher Education Committee

Introduced
- In Committee Assembly
- In Committee Senate
- On Floor Calendar Assembly
- On Floor Calendar Senate
- Passed Assembly
- Passed Senate
Delivered to Governor
Signed By Governor

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Actions

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	Assembly Actions - Lowercase Senate Actions - UPPERCASE
Jan 03, 2024	referred to higher education
Feb 14, 2023	referred to higher education

2023-S4798 (ACTIVE) - Details

See Assembly Version of this Bill:: A2427
Current Committee:: Senate Higher Education
Law Section:: Education Law
Laws Affected:: Amd Art 14 Art Head, §§695, 695-a, 695-b & 695-d, Ed L; amd §§612 & 658, Tax L; amd §78, St Fin L; amd §5205, CPLR
Versions Introduced in Other Legislative Sessions:: 2017-2018: A10115
2019-2020: A8192
2021-2022: S4605, A6795

2023-S4798 (ACTIVE) - Summary

Amends the New York state college choice tuition savings program to have the program also apply to elementary and secondary schools.

2023-S4798 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

                                 
BILL NUMBER: S4798

SPONSOR: PALUMBO
 
PURPOSE:

To establish a demonstration program to assess the feasibility of estab-
lishing a dual track child protective services program in Westchester
County with the two tracks 'being an assessment track and an investi-
gative track.

 
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:

Section one of this bill sets out a statement of legislative intent in
support of the need to authorize a demonstration program to assess the
feasibility of enhancing child protective services through the use of a
dual track approach.

Section two establishes the "Westchester County dual track demonstration
project" as the name Of this act.

Section three of this bill adds new section 423-a to the social services
law to authorize and direct the Office of Children and Family Services
(OCFS) to establish such a demonstration program in Westchester County.

Key provisions are as follows:

1. Westchester County Social services district shall be enabled to
assign complaints of alleged child abuse by the statewide central regis-
ter of child abuse to one of two tracks: an investigative track; or a
family assessment and services track designed to increase the likelihood
of increasing the delivery of comprehensive family support services to
children and families. The demonstration program shall be conducted for
the period commencing July first, two thousand five and shall end June
thirtieth, two thousand nine. The district shall establish a local advi-
sory counsel consisting of nine members that shall be appointed prior to
the commencement of the demonstration program. The advisory council
shall exist until June thirtieth, two thousand nine.

2. The commissioner of OCFS shall develop an application format to be
submitted by the County of Westchester. The commissioner of OCFS shall
also permit the district broad discretion in planning and implementing
its dual track demonstration program. The application format shall
contain a detailed description of, but not limited to:  the dual track
system; procedures to be utilized; the types of protective, preventive,
and rehabilitative services and intervention; the training that will be
provided to district and any non-district staff; the community
resources; and any additional funding needed.

3. The criteria for determining which cases may be placed in the assess-
ment track shall be determined by the local department of social
services in conjunction with the office of children and family services.
Reports which include allegations that would prevent them from being
included in the assessment track are listed in the bill.

4. Procedures that shall be followed for all cases included in the fami-
ly assessment and services track are outlined in the bill.

5. Expenditures made by the district with regard to the dual track
demonstration program shall be reimbursed in the same manner as expendi-

tures for child protective services investigations. The district-may
also seek private funds for the support of the demonstration project.

6. Provisions of section four hundred nine-e and four hundred nine-f of
this article shall not be applicable to the district with regard to the
demonstration program. Records that shall be included as part of the .
family assessment and services track shall include those listed in the
bill. Section four provides the severability clause.

Section five provides that this act shall take effect immediately and
shall expire and be deemed repealed July 2, 2011.

 
JUSTIFICATION:

The dual track approach represents an attempt to reduce the incidence of
child abuse and maltreatment by providing assistance to families in a
non-adversarial context, thereby allowing local social service districts
to focus resources on those children whose health and safety is most at
risk. This proposal is based on research on CPS reform from other states
substantiating that an adversarial investigation is counterproductive to
parents; may waste CPS resources; may reduce the services received by
such families; and may lead to further neglect or abuse rather than
preventing it. Research indicates that such a reformed CPS system would
deliver enhanced child abuse and neglect prevention; timely, effective
responses to instances of abuse and neglect that ensure children's safe-
ty; and helpful timely family interventions that reduce occurrences of
child maltreatment.

New York takes great pride in its reputation as a bellwether state noted
for the enactment of bold and creative legislation which addresses
complex issues that an evolving society is called upon to resolve.

Realizing that this state's current system of child safety and family
support is failing, a new and innovative' approach is urgently needed.
The dramatic increase in the number of mandatory and permitted reports
of child abuse and maltreatment made to the statewide central register,
and the manner in which such reports are investigated when founded or
indicated has strained the resources available to the state and local
social services districts. Such resources have increasingly been
directed to conduct investigations and corresponding assessments of
family need and to provide rehabilitative and family centered services
to children and their parents. Fully sixty-six percent of reports made
and investigated, were closed as unfounded, and forty percent of the
indicated cases were closed on the same day they were founded, according
to a recent statistical analysis.

Approximately eighty percent of all reported families who were investi-
gated received little, if any, family rehabilitative services.  It is
time for this state, on a trial basis, to conduct assessments, in lieu
of full fledged investigations, when reports warrant a less serious
review. Resources which otherwise would be expended in the investigatory
process could then be redirected to the division of family rehabilita-
tive and other services in order to stabilize family situations and
assist families in need. The success that states such as Missouri have
experienced using a similar dual track approach is significant and
suggests that such a system should be replicated in New York. By imple-
menting the demonstration program, this state can stimulate a restruc-

turing of child protective services to more accurately address needs and
requirements.

 
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:

2021-2022 A1793 referred toinsurance

2019-2020 A3694 referred toinsurance

2017/2018 A1796 referred toinsurance

2013/2014 A4344 referred tosocial services

2011/2012 A2687 referred tosocial services

2009/2010 A4021 referred tosocial services

2004: Veto 297

01/07/15 referred to children and families 01/06/16 referred to children
and families

 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:

Undetermined.

 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
Immediately, and shall expire and be deemed repealed July 2, 2022.

2023-S4798 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

                             
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   4798
 
                        2023-2024 Regular Sessions
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                             February 14, 2023
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by  Sen. PALUMBO -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
   printed to be committed to the Committee on Higher Education
 
 AN ACT to amend the education law, the tax law, the  state  finance  law
   and the civil practice law and rules, in relation to requiring the New
   York  state  college  choice  tuition savings program to also apply to
   elementary and secondary schools
 
   THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section  1.  The article heading of article 14-A of the education law,
 as added by chapter 546 of the laws of  1997,  is  amended  to  read  as
 follows:
                               NEW YORK STATE
                 [COLLEGE CHOICE] TUITION SAVINGS PROGRAM
   §  2. Section 695 of the education law, as added by chapter 546 of the
 laws of 1997, is amended to read as follows:
   § 695. Program established. There is hereby established  the  [college
 choice]  tuition savings program and such program shall be known and may
 be cited as  the  "New  York  state  [college  choice]  tuition  savings
 program".
   §  3. Subdivision 2 of section 695-a of the education law, as added by
 chapter 546 of the laws of 1997, is amended to read as follows:
   2. Attract students to public and  private  ELEMENTARY  AND  SECONDARY
 SCHOOLS, AND colleges and universities within the state.
   §  4. Subdivision 7 of section 695-b of the education law, as added by
 chapter 546 of the laws of 1997, is amended to read as follows:
   7. "Program" shall mean the New York state  [college  choice]  tuition
 savings program established pursuant to this article.
   §  5.  Paragraph  c of subdivision 2 of section 695-d of the education
 law, as added by chapter 546 of the laws of 1997, is amended to read  as
 follows:
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD07136-01-3
 S. 4798                             2

 
   c.  The ability of the investment instrument to track increasing costs
 of [higher] education;
   §  6. Paragraphs 32 and 33 of subsection (c) of section 612 of the tax
 law, paragraph 32 as amended by chapter 81 of the laws of 2008 and para-
 graph 33 as added by chapter 546 of the laws of  1997,  are  amended  to
 read as follows:
   (32) Contributions made during the taxable year by an account owner to
 one or more family tuition accounts established under the New York state
 [college  choice]  tuition  savings  program  provided for under article
 fourteen-A of the education law, to the extent not deductible or  eligi-
 ble  for  credit for federal income tax purposes, provided, however, the
 exclusion provided for in this paragraph shall not exceed five  thousand
 dollars  for an individual or head of household, and for married couples
 who file joint tax returns,  shall  not  exceed  ten  thousand  dollars;
 provided,  further,  that  such exclusion shall be available only to the
 account owner and not to any other person.
   (33) Distributions from a family tuition account established under the
 New York state [college choice] tuition  savings  program  provided  for
 under  article fourteen-A of the education law, to the extent includible
 in gross income for federal income tax purposes.
   § 7. Paragraph 3 of subsection (d) of section 658 of the tax  law,  as
 added by chapter 546 of the laws of 1997, is amended to read as follows:
   (3)  The  commissioner  may  by  regulation or instruction require the
 filing of a report annually by the comptroller or program manager of the
 New York state [college choice] tuition savings program, or their desig-
 nee, setting forth the  names  and  identification  numbers  of  account
 owners,  designated  beneficiaries  and  distributees  of family tuition
 accounts, the amounts contributed to such accounts, the amounts distrib-
 uted from such accounts and the nature of such distributions  as  quali-
 fied withdrawals or as withdrawals other than qualified withdrawals, and
 any such other information as the commissioner may require regarding the
 taxation  under this article of amounts contributed to or withdrawn from
 such accounts. The commissioner may require that any such report also be
 made to the account owner, designated beneficiary or distributee of  any
 such account.
   § 8. The section heading and subdivisions 1 and 2 of section 78 of the
 state  finance  law,  as  added  by chapter 546 of the laws of 1997, are
 amended to read as follows:
   New York state [college choice] tuition savings  program  trust  fund.
 1.  There  is  hereby established in the sole custody of the state comp-
 troller a special fund to be  known  as  the  New  York  state  [college
 choice]  tuition savings program trust fund. All payments from such fund
 shall be made in accordance with article fourteen-A of the education law
 and the memorandum of understanding entered into pursuant thereto on the
 audit of the state comptroller.
   2. The fund shall be a trust fund and shall consist of a trust account
 and an operating  account.  The  trust  account  shall  include  amounts
 received  by the New York state [college choice] tuition savings program
 pursuant to tuition savings agreements,  administrative  charges,  fees,
 and  all  other  amounts received by the program from other sources, and
 interest and investment income earned by the trust fund. The comptroller
 shall, from time to time, make transfers from the trust account  to  the
 operating account for the immediate payment of obligations under tuition
 savings  agreements,  operating expenses and administrative costs of the
 New York state [college choice] tuition savings program.  Administrative
 costs  shall be paid out of the operating account according to the terms
 S. 4798                             3
 
 and conditions established pursuant to the  provisions  of  section  six
 hundred ninety-five-c of the education law.
   §  9.  The opening paragraph of subdivision (j) of section 5205 of the
 civil practice law and rules, as added by chapter 546  of  the  laws  of
 1997, is amended to read as follows:
   Exemption  for New York state [college choice] tuition savings program
 trust fund payment monies. Monies in  an  account  created  pursuant  to
 article  fourteen-A  of the education law are exempt from application to
 the satisfaction of a money judgment as follows:
   § 10. This act shall take effect immediately and shall apply to  taxa-
 ble years beginning on or after January 1, 2023.

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